Joined hands
by Nylien
Summary: When Luke and Leia saved each other's life on the Death Star, it wasn't the first time. They hadn't understood at the time, but it had already happened. Twice.


**Disclaimer :** Don't own Star Wars, never will.

 **Notes :** This is merely a one-shot in which I'm trying to explore Luke and Leia's bond through the Force. A bit unrealistic, I know, but... For those who haven't read _Lightsabers_ , Janson is a character I created, from Leia's youth. He's Leia's best friend and a genius in chemistry. Died during Alderaan's destruction.

I hope you enjoy. Please, let me know what you thought.

* * *

 **Joined hands**

 _ **Tatooine, two years post-ROTJ**_

Luke Skywalker, clad in his usual black Jedi robes, his lightsaber hanging at his belt, was standing outside what had been his home for eighteen years, silently watching the binary sunset, a slight frown altering his features.

He had immersed himself in the depths of the Force a few moments earlier, and had let the usual flow of feelings, sensations, visions, and memories overwhelm him. It was a very soothing feeling, something Master Yoda had taught him to do a few years ago, while training on Dagobah, and that Luke had become quite fond of. It was a way for him to feel at peace and one with the Force.

This time, however, it had triggered something deep inside him, an almost but not altogether forgotten memory from his youth, that both confused and comforted him. He couldn't quite yet put a finger on it, and was trying to remember better.

Luke smiled as he felt his twin sister Leia Organa approach him. Turning around, he greeted her before she had the chance to do so first : ''Hi, Leia.''

She was wearing dark blue pants, adorned with the alderaani silver stripe, and a light blue shirt. Her blaster was holstered at her right side.

''Hey, Luke,'' she answered softly, a small smile dancing on her lips. ''Mind if I join you ?''

''Please be my guest. Han is on the Falcon ?''

Leia rolled her eyes. ''Yes, doing some repairs. As usual.''

Luke grinned. ''Don't tell me. The hyperdrive again ?''

''No, not at all. The hyperdrive only breaks in time of emergency,'' she retorted, deadpan.

He laughed, knowing perfectly well that Leia was in fact quite fond of the Falcon. She just loved teasing Han about it.

They both sat in the sand. Tracing letters in it with his left hand, Luke asked : ''Ready for the podrace tomorrow ?''

Leia grinned wickedly. He frowned. After years of having known her, Luke had learned – sometimes the hard way – that this grin usually meant her opponents were in trouble.

''I'll take that as a yes,'' he mumbled.

Her grin widened. ''More than ready, if you must know, brother dear. You ?''

''I'm always ready when speed is involved.''

''Yes. My thoughts, precisely.'' She frowned. ''You do realise we'll be against one another, right ?''

He smiled. ''I most certainly do. And I won't let you win, by the way, sis.''

''Nor will I let _you_ win, bro.''

''We'll see.''

''Indeed.''

Still smiling, they both fell silent. Luke continued to trace letters and symbols in the sand. This memory... It had included Leia, somehow. It was her presence he had felt when he had been... 7. Yes, he had been 7 at the time.

Leia's voice interrupted his musings. ''What is it ? You seem troubled.''

Luke winced. ''Not troubled. Just... confused.''

''About what ?''

''A... memory, I think. I'm not quite sure.'' He sighed. ''I can't remember clearly. I was 7, and... something, I don't know what... happened. And I felt your presence, too. Well, I didn't know it was you, not back then, but now I do, anyway. There was a cliff, and...''

He stopped, frowning. ''And what ?'' his sister pressed him.

He looked up at the sky. ''A sensation of falling. And a fear that I would die, too.''

''But you didn't.''

''Obviously.''

Leia bit her lower lip, probably lost in thought. Luke observed her intently. He still couldn't believe he had spent 18 years of his life not knowing her. She was his other half, and he couldn't imagine his life without her anymore.

She finally broke the silence. ''When I was 7...'' she began tentatively, then sighed. ''I can't remember. There is some sort of black hole in my memory.''

Luke arched an eyebrow. ''Weird. There is a blackhole in my memory, too, but I was ten at the time.''

Leia glanced back at him, silent and inquiring.

''Didn't anything bizarre happen when you were ten, by any chance ?'' he asked.

''I can't remember.'' She closed her eyes and leaned back on her hands. ''Maybe... I... I was... choking. I think.''

''Choking ?'' he repeated, startled.

''Yeah.'' She smiled faintly. ''Don't ask me why nor how, I told you, I don't know.''

Luke got up and sighed in frustration. ''Well, I don't know about you, but I'd like to have this piece of memory back, and to know exactly what happened.'' He started pacing. ''Why did I felt you this day ? Why was I afraid that I would die ? Why were you choking ? What could possibly...''

He stopped dead in his tracks, struck by an idea.

''There is a way for us to know exactly what happened.''

Leia frowned. ''Which is ?''

''We can unite our minds, let the Force flow through us and focus on this memory ! If we are submerged into the stream of the Force, there is a possibility that our minds will reconstitute what has been lost inside our subconsciousness, and because we will be together, we'll be able to...''

He stopped again as he saw Leia tensing considerably and her face going white.

''Leia ? What is it ?'' he asked her, concern flooding through him as he immediately crouched beside her.

She breathed deeply and slowly seemed to regain control of herself. ''Nothing, it's just... I... Ah, forget it. I'm fine,'' she replied shakily.

Luke frowned. Why did she always have to say 'I'm fine' no matter what ?

''Clearly not,'' he retorted. ''What is it ? What did I say ? Tell me, Leia, please.''

His sister bit her lower lip hard. She brought back her knees against her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around them. Luke felt completely taken aback. What could he possibly have said...

She sighed. ''I just... I know I overreacted, but...'' She inhaled deeply. ''I don't feel comfortable with us uniting our minds.''

Luke's mouth fell open, then he closed it again quickly. He knew a brief look of hurt had crossed his features when he saw Leia look away, apparently ashamed.

''Why ?'' he tried to ask in what he hoped was a casual voice.

She closed her eyes. ''It... It always reminds me of... the Death Star... Vader...''

She didn't need to say anything more. As a sickening feeling sank into his stomach, Luke understood her reluctance. When he thought of what Vader – of what their _father_ – had done to Leia, he always felt nauseous.

Tentatively, he put a hand on her back. When she didn't pull back, he embraced her softly. She soon broke the embrace and turned away.

''You know,'' he whispered quietly, ''it's not supposed to... hurt.''

She sighed again. ''I know. I just...''

''You don't feel uncomfortable when I touch your mind, do you ?''

''No, I don't, but I suppose this is going to be different, isn't it ? She asked, lifting her head up to look at him.

Luke thought about it. This idea had come to him unexpectedly, and he hadn't given much thought about it. He and his sister had gotten used to touch each other's mind for comfort, reassurance, and sometimes just to feel the other's presence. But this ?

''Yes, if we do it, it's going to be different. Our minds will be one, for a moment. It's... a matter of complete trust,'' he answered her, unsure whether she would accept or not.

For a long time, she didn't say anything, merely gazing absently into nothingness. Suddenly, she bolted upright and let out an exasperated sigh.

''Ah, this is getting stupid. Let's do it,'' she declared, frustration evident in her tone.

Luke frowned. It seemed to him that she was only agreeing because she wanted to prove something to herself. This was exactly something Leia would do when she thought of herself as weak.

''Are you sure ?'' he asked. ''I do not want to be the cause of flasbacks.''

She winced. ''I think it's time I learn to fight flashbacks.''

He gazed intently at her. ''I do not want you to do this just to prove a point.''

She glared at him. ''Neither do I. But I trust you.''

Before he could protest again, she took his left hand in her right and repeated : ''I trust you, Luke.''

He hesitated one last time, then took her other hand, closed his eyes and advised her to do the same. With caution, he proceeded to reach her presence through the Force, the towering mountain of blinding light, raging inferno and freezing blizzard that was his sister's Force signature. As he envelopped her presence with his own, he saw her unbreakable barriers rise and shield her mind, these huge and imposing walls of fire and ice that had kept even Vader from reaching the information he sought, and preventing him from entering her mind as well.

Luke just waited, knowing that it was up to Leia to decide when she was ready. Soon, the walls began to tremble, then cracked and vanished completely. Warily, his sister extended her own presence towards him. Their Force lights merged together as the flow of images overwhelmed them both.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

The sudden surge of power that burst through the Force would have been enough to destroy a whole building.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 _ **Tatooine, eleven years pre-ANH**_

Two young boys, one blonde and the other black-haired, emerged from behind a boulder on top of a rocky hill. The blonde boy climbed onto the stone and gestured for his friend to join him.

''This is it, we've arrived,'' Luke told his best friend Biggs Darklighter. ''What do you think ?''

''That's amazing. I didn't know there was such a view on Tatooine. I didn't even imagine it was possible.''

''Told you so,'' Luke teased. ''That's my favorite spot on this planet.''

Before them was a valley stretching to the horizon. Bathed in the crimson light of the twin suns refracted over a thousand times, the rocks had the appearence of gems. From their high vantage point, they could see the river of sand which, moved by the howling wind, looked like a river of blood. Echoes reverberated throughout the place.

''It's incredible. When you see this, you'd even think that this dustball isn't so bad after all.''

''Yeah, well, maybe not,'' Luke laughed as he jumped off the rock. He did love this site, though. He had first found it over a year ago, and had come back every time he had had a day off ever since.

''Come on, I want to show you something else,'' he shouted at his friend as he ran down the hill.

They stumbled over the rocky path, crossed the river of sand and stopped at the bottom of a small cliff.

''Well ?'' Biggs asked.

''It's at the top, we need to climb.''

A few minutes later, when both at the top, Biggs's mouth fell open. ''It looks like the stars in the sky,'' he whispered.

Luke grinned. ''I told you this place was worth the trip. I like coming here. It always reminds me of my promise that, one day, I'll become a pilot and visit the stars. As many as I can.''

A huge smile appeared on his friend's face. ''Yeah, remember we'll do that together, right ?''

''Of course.''

They both fell silent, admiring the view. Then, Biggs looked around him.

''Hey, we're actually pretty high on this side, look.''

Luke joined him and glanced down. Indeed, whereas the cliff was only a few meters high on the side from which they came, there, it was much higher ; enough to be completely crushed down if someone were to fall.

''Don't tell me you're afraid of heights,'' he quipped, laughing.

His friend scowled at him. ''What kind of pilot is afraid of heights ? Nah, I'm just stating a fact.''

''Sure.'' Luke was still grinning when he suddenly spotted a weird grey and black spot a few meters below. ''Hey, what's that ?''

Biggs frowned and peered down. ''A... small bird, I think.''

''But it seems hurt ! We have to help it !''

''Yeah, and we can't do anything about it.''

Indignation crossed Luke's features. ''Of course we can, we just have to reach it and bring it to my home. There we can heal it !''

''And how are you going to reach it ? You can't climb down here !'' Biggs replied in a sharp voice.

''I've climbed down worse !'' Luke retorted.

''It's suicide !''

But Luke had made up his mind. ''Gimme your bag, I'm going down. You stay here.''

Biggs threw his arms in the air. ''You... stupid... stubborn... idiot, Luke ! All this for a bird !'' He handed Luke his bag. ''Just make sure you don't get yourself killed, okay ?''

Luke put the bag accross his shoulder, then began to climb down. ''I'll do that,'' he promised.

No trouble occured on his way down. He soon arrived near the bird. It was a small bird of prey, from a rare specie. Its left wing was broken, and he had a nasty cut on the side. Still clinging to the rock face, he slowly and very carefully, so as not to hurt it any further nor provoke his own fall, placed the small bird into the bag.

''Okay, I've got it ! I'm going back up !'' he shouted at his friend.

He climbed back up one meter. Suddenly, the rock under his right foot gave way , making him fall backwards. He yelped in fear and surprise as he desperately and haphazardly threw his arm into the air, only managing to catch hold of the rock face at the very last second. The bag slipped off his shoulder. Luke caught it with his right hand.

''Luke !'' Biggs yelled from above.

Luke's heart was hammering in his chest. He was terrified. _Biggs was right._ He looked back up. His left hand was becoming clammier by the second. It was slipping. He knew he was going to fall soon.

A nanosecond before his fingers gave way, his heart sank, his eyes widened.

 _I'm going to die._

Then he fell down.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 _ **Alderaan, eleven years pre-ANH**_

''Janson, if you want that thing to work, you plug the blue wire, not the black one,'' Leia Organa told her best friend Janson Fankkrum.

''Oh right, thanks.''

They were sitting in the middle of the royal palace's main hangar, Artoo beeping joyfully around them as they worked on a small robot, amused pilots and mechanics passing by.

''Remind me again,'' Janson said suddenly. ''How do you know all this about electronics ?''

Leia shrugged. ''Same way you know everything you know about chemistry, I suppose. It's instinctive.''

''Speaking of which, next time, we go to the lab.''

''Alright.''

They worked in silence for a little while. Suddenly, Leia gasped and doubled over. Janson was at her side at once.

''Leia ?! What is it ?''

She breathed deeply, wincing and stirring her left arm. It felt sore. ''Nothing. I'm fine, I just...''

For the second time in less than a minute, she doubled over, her eyes widening and her heart sinking in her chest. White flashed in front of her eyes ; she couldn't see nor hear anything anymore. She could only feel hot wind brushing her face, and a foreign and yet very much familiar presence near her.

Unconsciously, she stretched her right arm and grabbed something. A wrist. Then, a foreign hand grabbed her own arm, and, not knowing why, she pulled on it with all of her strengh. The weight on her right arm and heart soon disappeared, and the white veil in front of her eyes lifted.

The familiar presence was gone.

Her heart was hammering in her chest. She was feeling queasy. Opening her eyes, she saw Janson's worried face in front of her.

Then her mind went blank, and she collapsed on the floor.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 _ **Tatooine, eleven years pre-ANH**_

 _Then he fell down._

Luke screamed in terror, his left arm desperately trying to catch hold of something – _anything_ -, his right hand still clutching the strap of Biggs's bag.

Suddenly, he felt a presence near him, both foreign and familiar, as white flashed in front of his eyes. A hand grabbed his left wrist. He gripped the foreign wrist in return and clung tightly as it stopped his fall, then pulled him upwards, propelling him safely onto the top of the hill, just next to Biggs. The white veil then lifted and the presence disappeared, leaving him feeling strangely hollow.

He looked up at his friend's terrified and relieved face. He smiled shakily. ''I have the bird. It's still alive.''

Biggs slapped Luke's arm. ''That's all you have to say?!''

Luke unconsciously rubbed his left arm. ''And I kept my promise. I'm still alive.''

''You scared me to death. I thought you were falling.''

''I was. Somebody pulled me up.''

Biggs frowned. ''Nobody pulled you up, Luke.''

Luke sighed in frustration. ''I know it sounds strange, but there was somebody here who pulled me up. Someone I know. Or knew.'' Before his friend could argue further, he added : ''Look, let's just get back home, alright ? I've had enough for one day. And that bird needs care.''

His friend stared oddly at him, then sighed. ''Alright.''

Both shaking, they got to their feet and retraced their steps in silence. Luke turned one last time, hoping he would feel cool air brushing his face again.

But nothing happened.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

 _ **Alderaan, eight years pre-ANH**_

The sunlight was illuminating faintly the cool and quiet afternoon. Cold wind was making the trees' leaves shake violently. The roar of a waterfall could be heard nearby. Two young children – a black-haired boy and a dark-haired girl – were playing in a river.

''How long can you hold your breath under water ?'' Janson asked.

Leia shrugged. ''I don't know. A little less than two minutes, I think.''

She swam as far as the bank and back. ''Why ?'' she asked.

''I've just begun my swimming training. Last week. We're working on that.''

''Yes, my trainer made me work on this, too. Before I stopped the training for lack of time.''

She floated on her back for a minute, then added : ''I think I should take it again. Now that I don't have to follow etiquette lessons anymore, I have plenty of free time.''

Janson smirked. ''That's a relief for you, isn't it ?''

She rolled her eyes. ''You don't know how much.''

Her friend made a roll underwater, then emerged again, frowning. ''What's that, tied at your belt ?''

''A vibroblade. I like it. It's even designed to work properly under water.''

''Why on earth do you have a vibroblade on you ?''

''I've just begun my defense training. Three weeks ago,'' she answered flippantly.

''And ?'' he asked, suspicious.

''And one of the first thing my trainer told me was to always look for what could be used as a weapon, wherever I went, or to always have a weapon on me. I opted for the second option. Much simpler.''

Janson frowned. ''Isn't he a bit paranoiac ?''

''Definitely. But I figured that a small vibroblade could always be useful anyway.''

''Sure it can, but I didn't think your father would let you have one. And especially not your aunts.''

She grinned. ''I wouldn't know. I haven't asked them.''

His frown deepened. ''Where did you get this one, then ?''

Her grin widened. ''I nicked it. In the armoury. Actually, that's not right. Borrowed would be a far better choice of words. I borrowed it.''

He arched an eyebrow. ''Without permission.''

''That's the blackspot.''

He laughed. ''Such princess you are.''

She laughed as well. ''I don't know what you are talking about.''

''Sure.'' He shook his head. ''How about a game ? We swim to the bottom and back. The faster wins.''

''Sounds good.''

Both of them immediately plunged and swam as fast as they could. Leia soon lost sight of Janson. Arrived at the bottom, she repositionned herself and kicked the ground to propel herself upwards. She soon reached the surface and gasped for air. She then grinned as she saw that her friend wasn't there yet.

After a moment, however, a bad feeling crept into her stomach. Janson hadn't resurfaced yet. Something was wrong.

''Janson ?!'' she cried out.

No answer. She hesitated one last second, then took a deep breath and plunged back into the water.

She forced herself to keep her eyes open and swam back to the bottom. Looking around herself, she headed towards the spot where Janson had plunged. She soon realised that the bottom was deeper in that part of the river.

A feeling of dread invaded her. Dense vegetation was beginning to surround her completely, until she couldn't see far ahead of her anymore. She suddenly heard noises to her right. Propelling herself towards its source, she drew the small vibroblade from her belt.

Then, she finally spotted him.

Her friend was struggling to free himself from some kind of aquatic plant which had trapped him by twisting and winding snake-like tendrils around his wrists and ankles. Janson looked up at her. From his open mouth, Leia could tell he was beginning to desperately need air.

She activated her vibroblade and swam as fast as she could towards him, twisting so as to avoid the tendrils that were trying to wind themselves around her, and cutting the ones she couldn't dodge.

She soon reached her friend and, slashing at the tendrils, delivered him from his ties. At the same moment, tendrils managed to twist around her ankles. Leia pointed her thumb upwards, at the surface, indicating Janson to go immediately. He needed air, and she could hold on a bit longer. He hesitated for a second, then swam to the surface.

 _'Not much longer, though,'_ she thought, panic invading her as she wrestled to free herself from the tendrils. Each time she would cut one, another would wind itself around her. Her lungs began to burn seriously. Darkness crept at the edges of her vision. She was choking.

Renewed and desperate energy filled her. She cut savagely at the plant, finally managing to free herself. Blindly, she tried to propel herself towards the surface, her vision almost completely clouded.

 _'Hold on,'_ she told herself frantically. _'Just a bit longer._ _Just a...'_

Her strength deserted her. Not yet completely unconscious, she sank back towards the bottom of the river, her right arm still outstretched as if to reach the surface, unmoving.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 _ **Tatooine, eight years pre-ANH**_

''Luke, now is really not the time to fall asleep,'' whispered Biggs at the intention of his class neighbour. ''Wake up.''

Luke stirred. ''What ?'' he asked in a sleepy voice.

Biggs sighed. ''We're in History class, remember ?''

Luke blinked a few times. ''Oh, yeah. Right.''

They listened a moment to their teacher, a young woman with striking green eyes. Luke winced. His chest felt constricted. Unconsciously rubbing the sore spot, he turned back to his friend.

''It's strange, but for a moment, I thought I was elsewhere. Somewhere colder. With no sand, but trees and grass and water.''

Biggs chuckled. ''Clearly, you were dreaming.''

Luke winced again. He was having difficulty to breathe. His chest hurt. ''Maybe, but...''

The teacher's stern voice made him start. ''Luke Skywalker ! Could you please repeat what I was just saying ?''

Luke flushed violently. He stammered, the pain in his chest incresaing by the second. ''Well, I... Er...''

''I'm waiting,'' the young woman replied, lifting an eyebrow.

He opened his mouth again, then gasped and doubled over, his eyes closing shut as his whole body tensed. He barely felt himself fall on the ground, nor could he discern the voices around him anymore. A presence he... knew ?... Had known ?... appeared beside him.

Blindly and unconsciously, he stretched his left arm and gripped what felt like a foreign hand. When it gripped back, he pulled on it with all of his strength. The crushing weight on his chest soon disappeared. Coughing and shaking, he opened his eyes again. The presence was gone.

Biggs and the teacher's loud voices made him wince. They were filled with concern.

''I'm fine,'' he said, propping himself up on his elbows.

''You most certainly weren't,'' retorted the teacher. ''You...''

''I just fainted, is all,'' Luke cut her off, sighing. ''Nothing to worry about. I guess I'm just a bit tired.''

She was obviously unconvinced, but didn't press the matter. The class sat back, and the young woman resumed her lesson.

Luke purposely stared straight ahead of him, not wanting to see anyone looking at him strangely.

He couldn't understand what had just happened. And he would probably never know.

He just wished the presence had stayed with him. It had made him feel whole.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 _ **Alderaan, eight years pre-ANH**_

 _Not yet completely unconscious, she sank back towards the bottom of the river, her right arm still_ _out_ _stretched as if to reach the surface, unmoving._

A nanosecond before her mind went completely blank, a foreign and yet familiar presence envelopped her, and she felt a hand grab her outstretched arm. Automatically, she seized the hand back. Then, her eyes widened. She was being pulled towards the surface !

The foreign presence propelled her out of the water and onto the grassy ground, just besides her friend. Then it disappeared, leaving her gasping and coughing, spitting water out of her lungs on the ground as tears rose in her eyes.

She distantly heard Janson's worried voice above her, and, propping herself up, tried to open her eyes and answer him. She wanted to reassure him, to say that she was okay. But she didn't get that far.

Her strength definitely deserted her this time, and she collapsed back onto the ground, unconscious.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The hurricane of energy that had been howling through the Force for quite some time finally weakened and dissipated into its usual peaceful flow.

#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*

 _ **Tatooine, two years post-ROTJ**_

Luke slowly disengaged himself from the energetic flow of the Force and landed back into the present's reality. He felt Leia do the same next to him, then frowned as he felt her stumble. Opening his eyes, he caught her before she could hit the ground.

''Hey,'' he asked her, ''are you okay ?''

She released him and got back to her feet. She looked a bit pale and tired, but seemed otherwise unharmed and relatively well. She crossed her arms around her chest. ''Yes, I'm fine. The return to reality was just a bit hard. And the whole experience a bit overwhelming. But I'm fine.'' She smiled at him.

He smiled back. ''Well. It was certainly interesting. Turns out that we didn't wait until the Death Star to save each other.''

''Indeed.'' Leia looked up at the now starry sky, apparently lost in thought.

Luke himself was reeling. He was relieved to have this piece of memory back, dumbfounded to find out that he and Leia had saved each other through the Force – Sith, he didn't even _know_ it was possible – and happy to know that they had always been connected, even when apart. But what troubled him was...

''How could we have _ever_ forgotten something like this ?'' Leia asked, echoing his thoughts.

Luke shrugged helplessly. ''I don't know. I don't understand either. The most startling is that I was awake afterwards. You fell unconscious both times, so this could explain why _you_ couldn't remember, but me ? I was still conscious afterwards. Both times. And yet...''

He sighed. Trying to recall better, he saw himself going back to the cliff, many times. He remembered looking for something, or someone, but not knowing what nor why.

''Maybe,'' he ventured, ''maybe... because I couldn't understand what had happened and because I knew nobody would believe me and everybody would think I had gone nuts, I gradually convinced myself that it had never happened in the first place, that it was just a dream. And I must have believed it in the end, until I completely forgot about the episodes. Besides, Biggs never talked about it again, so... Nothing could trigger me.''

Leia silently chewed on her lips. ''Yes, Janson never mentionned it either.''

Luke laughed. ''We must have scared them to death.''

She smiled sadly. ''Yes. I think we did.'' Then, she added : ''The fact that you stayed conscious and I didn't would explain why you remembered more than I did.''

''Yes, probably.''

They looked at each other silently. By mutual agreement, they each raised a hand – Luke's left, Leia's right, as it had always been – and interlaced their fingers, both acutely aware of the other's presence, oblivious to the rest of the world.

Suddenly, Han's voice made them both start :

''Hey, kids ! What the hell are you still doing outside ?! It's past midnight ! You have a podrace at dawn, go get some damned sleep !''

Luke and Leia both looked at each other for a very long second, then burst out laughing, unable to stop themselves. After a while, they finally managed to calm down and walked back to the Falcon, their hands still joined, so as to never part again.

* * *

 _Fiction_ #3

 _Nylien_


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